Dulaang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas Stages Tisoy Brown: Hari ng Wala

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Television and movie actor Neil Ryan Sese returns to his theatre roots in Dulaang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas’s Tisoy Brown: Hari ng Wala.

Famed for his role as Boy, the over-protective older brother to a gay sibling in the award-winning film Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros, Sese is currently an exclusive talent [blv1] of GMA Network. Sese’s role in Huling Pasada as the imagined character Mario of the prolific writer Ruby (played by Agot Isidro) garnered him a nomination for Best Actor from the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino or the Gawad Urian in 2009. Sese is a graduate of BA Theatre Arts from the University of the Philippines Diliman.

In Tisoy Brown, Sese alternates the lead role Tisoy Brown with another veteran stage and indie film actor and director Paolo O’Hara.

Drawing inspiration from Philippine mythology and folklore, Tisoy Brown is a reimagined adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s Peer Gynt, a five-act play in verse and arguably Ibsen’s most widely performed play. Based on and inspired by Norwegian mythology and folk tales, Peer Gynt traverses a series of fantastic adventures: from the land of the trolls and giants to the world of the fools and even to the underworld. In the Filipino adaptation by award winning playwright Rody Vera, Gynt is Tisoy Brown who wrestles the historical with the mystical. Tisoy Brown brings the audience to a journey crisscrossing reality to super-reality and hyper-reality as he struggles with the eternal elusiveness of truth and deception, meaning and purpose.

Eight Interesting Facts About Manila

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Myproperty.ph opens the year with some nostalgic trivia that gives us a historical glimpse of real estate and business.

On January 9, millions of devotees will once again head to Quiapo Church for one of the most-awaited religious celebrations of the Philippines, the Feast of the Black Nazarene. Due to its popularity, the Black Nazarene is considered as one of the things that distinguish Manila from all the other cities of the country.

But being the hodgepodge of culture and history it is, the nation’s capital is a lot more fascinating than you think. Should you find yourself in the vicinity anytime soon, these random facts should help you see Manila in a whole new light.

1. The original Black Nazarene is said to have been carved by an anonymous Mexican sculptor and was brought to the country aboard a Spanish galleon from Acapulco, Mexico, back in the mid-1600s. There are several assumptions as to why the statue depicts Jesus having a very dark complexion. One popular account is that there was a fire on the galleon that brought it to the country burned, which charred the statue. Others believe it’s the result of staining from the smoke of votive candles offered to it through the years. According to Monsignor Sabino A. Vengco. Jr. from the Loyola School of Theology, the original image was carved from mesquite wood, a dark type of wood that was commonly used as a sculpting medium during the period.

Holiday Non-Stop Bus Extends Service

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The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has granted an extension of the special permit for the temporary Premium Point-to-Point (P2P) Bus Service until January 31 in view of the popularity of the service.

“We are pleased with the positive reception of the bus service, given the increase in ridership over the holidays. The service offers the riding public access to a convenient transportation option that can attract private car owners to shift to public transportation,” said Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Jun Abaya.

The premium P2P bus service is a new public utility vehicle (PUV) sub-category created by the DOTC that offers commuters another safe and reliable mode of transportation. It allows shorter travel time, as buses depart on a fixed schedule and travel directly from the terminal to the drop-off point.

“Aside from providing significant travel time savings and enhanced passenger experience, this can lessen the number of cars on the road and make more efficient use of road space through higher-capacity vehicles,” added Abaya.